Lawmakers Return To Capitol, House Approves Fix To Election Mistake

(MPRN-Lansing) The state Legislature was back in session for its first day of voting yesterday. A crowd of protestors gathered to – quote – “reject the Trump agenda.” Their issues ranged from immigration to equality to standing up to hate speech.

After about an hour of speeches, protestors moved into the Capitol. They stood outside the House chamber while lawmakers were in session.

State lawmakers moved on a bill to fix an election mishap. Recently, elections officials in several cities posted the wrong filing deadline for mayoral and city council races. The bill would allow those candidates to get on the November ballot in spite of missing the deadline. The communities would face a penalty for the mistake.

Republican Representative Aaron Miller of Sturgis is chairman of the House Elections and Ethics Committee. He says the legislation isn’t perfect, but hopes the potential penalties will prevent similar mistakes in the future.

“It is the only adequate motivator in this case to hopefully prevent this from happening again and to motivate communities to take a look at their charters, to take a look at following state law to the last letter.”

Opponents of the legislation say it lets elections officials off the hook. The legislation now goes to the Senate.

Michigan is one of only 10 states with a full-time Legislature. But Gongwer News Service Editor Zach Gorchow says a combination of a part-time Legislature and the state’s strict term limits law would make Michigan unique.